Apparatus for ripping raw tobacco leaves



6,, 1938.. o. E. EISSMANN 2,127,329

APPARATUS FOR RIPPIN G RAW TOBACCO LEAVES Filed Jun l, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet l Aug 16,

O. E. EISSMANN APPARATUS FOR RIPPING RAW TOBACCO LEAVES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 1, 1935 Patented Aug. 16, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE APPARATUS FOR, RIPPING RAW troBAooo LEAVES Application June 1, 1935, Serial No'. 24,456

In Germany June 4, 1934E portion of tobacco from the ribs of the leaves.

An object of this invention is to provide an apparatus whereby the compressed layers of leaves may be fed toa machine and the body or "web portion of the leaves removed from the ribs.

Anotherobject of thisinvention is to provide a machine of thischaracter which is so constructed that the initially removed tobacco leaf portions are thrown about in a housing so that theseloosened portions will be beaten by a rotary toothed beater which will operate to remove the ll] designates generally a housing of suitable size 1 which is mounted on standards l3. The housing I 0 is provided at one end thereof with an opening Web portion of the tobacco leaf from the ribs.

A further object of thisinvention is to provide in a device of this kind means whereby the retension of the loosened leaves may be controlled in the beating portion of the device by adjustable grate bars.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a machine of this character whereby the tobacco in its initial condition is compressed and fed to a separating member which carries the "separated leaves to the beating drum for removal of the web portions of the leaf by the beating drum.

in the claims appended hereto.

In the drawings, wherein like symbols refer to like or corresponding parts throughout the several views.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section partly in detail through a machine constructed according an embodiment of this invention.

' Figure 2 is a front elevation of one blade'of the toothed separating member.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary side elevation partly in section of the lower portion of the beating member. Figure 4 is an enlarged side elevation partly in section of a modified form of heating means, and

" Figure 5 is a sectional view taken on the line merals of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the several views; the numeral 'llwforming an intake opening through which a conveyer l2 operates so as to convey the leaves of tobacco to the housing ID at the intake side thereof.

7 Theconveyor I2 is operated in any conventional manner and in the present instance operatesthrough a power member [4 which is disposed below the housing Ill and within the frame l3. The power member 14 is connected to the conveyor I2 by beltsor the like as will be hereinafter described.

A compression roll I5 is mounted on the shaft 16 journaled in the housing Ill and this shaft l6 has a gearl'l secured thereto. A shaft I8 is journaled in the housing ID at one side of the shaft lfi'and is provided with a pulley l9 over which abelt' 20 travels. A gear 2| is secured to the shaft [8 and meshes with the gear ll so that rotation of the'gear 2| will effect rotation of the gear I1 and the pressure roll [5. If desired the inner end of the conveyor [2 may be operatively connected with theshaft l8. A webbing 22 is disposedbetween the innerend of the conveyor l2'and the periphery of the drum orpressure roll l5 so that the tobacco leaves moving with the conveyor llwillpas's to the upper portion of the pressure roll I5 which turns in the direction in dicated bythe arrow in Figure 1. A pair of pressure rolls 23 and 24'are secured toshafts 25 and 26 respectively which are journaled in the housing 10 andare connected as by a gear train 21 to the gear Ill The'vvebbing member 28 is disposed u b'etweenthe two pressure rolls 23 and 24 and overlies'th'e pressure roll l5.

A'curved plate 29 is disposed forwardly of the pressure member l5 and has its rear end portion partly overlying the periphery of the roller l5 an;d"this'rearend portion is disposed in spaced relation to ajbar 30whioh is positioned adjacent ,the inner pressure roll 24' and the tobacco which 'iscompressedbetween'the rolls I5, 23 and 24 is portion or the plate 29 and the bar 30.

' Asthe toba-ccois forced between the rear portion ofthe plate 29 andthe pressure bar 30 this tobacco inits compressed condition is torn away by means ofa-looseningmember generally desig nated as 3|i This loosening member 3| is mounted on a shaft 32 and a pulley 33 is secured to the shaft 32 and has a driving belt 34 trained thereover: A secondand'sma'ller'pulley 35 is secured to the shaft 32 and the belt 20 is trained I over this pulley 35.

The looseningmember 3| is formed of a pair of opposed toothed plates '36 shown more'specifically in Figure 2. These plates are secured to --radially arranged arms Slwhich are fastened to fed'between thespaceformed by the rear end the shaft 32. The teeth of the loosening member 3! swing closely adjacent the inner concave surface of the plate 29.

It will be seen that the inner concave surface of the plate 29 is substantially concentric with the circular path of the tips of the comb prongs or toothed plates 36, and the plate 29 acts as an anvil to the tobacco moved along by the comb 36. The upper end of the plate 29 is provided with .an abutment 29 in line with the webbing or abutment 22. The upper and lower rollers ll, 23 and 24, the member 28, bar 30 and abutment 29, suitably disposed from the abutment or bar 30, form a channel, which channel discharges against the path of the tips of the combs 36, to enable the combs 36 topull the leaf portions close by the abutment 29 and along the inner contour of the plate or concave 29.

A beating drum or member 38 having beating teeth 39 is mounted on the shaft 40 journaled in the housing l6 and the teeth 39 are so positioned as to engage between the'teeth of the plate 36. In this manner when the loosening member 3| rotates as shown by the arrow in Figure 1 the beating member 38will rotate in the direction shown by the arrow in Figure l and will rotate at a faster rate by reason of the belt 34 engaging a relatively small pulley 4| which is secured to the shaft 46. An idling pulley 42 is mounted on the shaft 43 and one run of the belt 34 engages over the pulley 42.

Disposed below the beating member 38 there is positioned a grate member 44 which is supported for adjustment toward or away from the beating member 38 by means of slotted arms 45. This grate member 44 comprises a plurality of spaced apart bars 46 which, as shown in Figure 1, are spaced apart at varying distances the distance between the bars increasing in the direction of the rotation of the beating member 38.

The slotted arms 45 are held in adjusted position by means of headed bolts or adjusting members 41 which engage in horizontally disposed slots 48 carried by a bottom wall or frame piece 49.

When the loosened material drops through the grate bars 46 the material will fall onto a conveyor 50 which conveys the loosened material both web and ribs out of the housing ID. A plate or hopper 5| is positioned inwardly of the housing l0 so as to prevent any loosened material dropping through the grate bars 46 from passing forwardly and to retain this looscned material on the conveyor 50 until removed by movement of the conveyor.

In Figure 4 there is shown a modified form of beating means wherein the beating member 38 is disposed in a housing Ill similar to the housing l0 and the grate. member or screen 44 is positioned concentrically below the beating member 38*. In this modified'form the grate bars 46 are each separate one from another and are provided with right angularly related opposite end portions 52 through which bolts 53 extend. These bolts 53 engage through radially arranged slots 54 provided in the housing Ill By means of the individual adjustment of the grate bars 46 the desired retention of the material can be had for beating by the beating member 38 It will be obvious that movement of the grate bars. 4G toward the drum or beating member 38 will reduce the spaces between the grate bars and movement awayfrom the beating member 38 will enlarge these spaces.

In Figure 6 there is shown a further modification of this invention where the housing Ill has an improved form of tobacco loosening means in the form of a toothed member 36 which is integrally secured to an arm 55. It will also be understood that in this modified form of separating means either of the drums shown in Figures 1 or 4 with the grate bars of Figure 4 may be used.

In the use and operation of this device the tobacco is fed to the housing II] on the conveyor l2 and compressed between the rolls I5, 23 and 24. The compressed layers of tobacco leaves are loosened by the loosening member 3! which has the loosening blades 36 secured thereto. This loosened tobacco is then carried to the separating member 38 which turns at a faster rate than the loosening member 36. The teeth 39 of the separating member 38 will throw the tobacco toward the top of the housing I 0 and as this tobacco falls down it will again strike the separating member 38 and after several beating operations the tobacco will be practically completely separated as to the web from the ribs.

In many instances the ribs R, as shown in Figure 3, will engage between the grate bars 46 and the web portions W will be torn oiT of the ribs R. before the removed web portions are able to drop between the bars or screening members 46.

It is obvious that various changes and modifications may be made in the details of construction and design of the above specifically described embodiment of this invention without departing from the spirit thereof, such changes and modifications being restricted only by the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus for ripping raw tobacco leaves, forwarding compressing means for conveying the leaves, an abutment disposed in relation to said means to form with said means a pressure channel, means for feeding tobacco leaves into said channel and between said forwarding compressing means, and loosening means at the outlet end of the channel acting upon the leaves resting on the abutment forming the channel for loosening the leaf portions from the ribs of the tobacco leaves, said means including comb prongs acting upon the compressed tobacco leaves perpendicularly to the plane of said leaves while under compression in said pressure channel for loosening the leaf portions from the ribs of the tobacco leaves.

2. In an apparatus for ripping raw tobacco leaves, forwarding compressing means for conveying the leaves, an abutment disposed in relation to said means to form with said means a pressure channel, means for feeding tobacco leaves into said channel and between said forwarding compressing means, means at the outlet end of the channel acting upon the leaves.

centric with the circle formed by the circulan.

movement of the tips of said comb prongs, said plate extending below said abutment about a third of the arc of said circle, and acting as an anvil to the action of the prong tips on the tobacco leaves moved along the same, whereby the;

utobaccoleaves are straightened outandthe leaf :Mportions loosenedfromthe ribs of :the tobacco l :leaves.

mdisposed in relation to said means to form with 3. In. an. apparatus ing means for conveying the leaves, an abutment said means a pressureachannel, means for feedthe. leaves resting onthe abutment forming the channel for loosening the leaf portions from the ribs of the tobacco leaves, said loosening means including comb prongs acting upon the compressed tobacco leaves perpendicularly to the plane of said leaves while under compression in said pressure channel for moving said leaves away from the pressure channel and straightening them out, a plate having an interior contour concentric with the circle formed by the circular movement of the tips of said comb prongs, said plate extending below said abutment about a third of the arc of said circle, and acting as an anvil to the action of the prong tips on the tobacco leaves moved along the same, and a beater roll disposed at the outlet end of said loosening means and its plate, said beater roll having pins adapted to engage interstices of the comb prongs of the loosening meanslto strip off the ribs adhering to them, carry them along, and by beating the same against the housing, remove any leaf portions still adhering to the ribs, whereby the leaf portions are stripped from the ribs of the tobacco leaves.

4. In an apparatus for ripping raw tobacco leaves, having a housing, a pressure channel means for feeding tobacco leaves into said channel, means at the outlet end of the channel acting upon the leaves for loosening the leaf portions from the ribs of the tobacco leaves, said loosening means including comb prongs acting upon the tobacco leaves perpendicularly to the plane of said leaves while under compression in said pressure channel for moving said leaves away from the pressure channel and straightening them out, a plate having an interior contour concentric with the circle formed by the circular movement of the tips of said comb prongs, said plate extending below said abutments about a third of the arc of said circle, and acting as an anvil to the action of the prong tips on the tobacco leaves moved along the same, a beater roll disposed at the outlet end of the loosening means and its plate, said beater roll having pins adapted to engage interstices of the comb prongs of the loosening means to strip off the ribs adhering to them, carry them along, and by beating the same against the housing, remove any leaf portions still adhering to the ribs, and a grating concentric with the axis of rotation of the beater roll, one end of said grating extending in proximity to one end of the curved plate of the loosening means, whereby the leaf portions are stripped from the ribs of the tobacco leaves.

5. In an apparatus for ripping raw tobacco leaves, having a housing, a pressure channel means for feeding tobacco leaves into said channel, means at the outlet end of the channel acting upon the leaves for loosening the leaf portions from the ribs of the tobacco leaves, said loosening means including comb prongs acting upon the tobacco leaves perpendicularly to the plane of said leaves while under compression in for ripping raw tobacco w'leaves, having. a housing; forwarding compresssaid-l pressurechannel-for: moving said leaves away from the pressure channel' and straighteninglthem out, a plate having an =interiorcontour concentric-with the circle formed by the circular movement of the tips of said comb prongs, said plate extending below said channel about a third of the arc of said circle, and acting as an anvil to the action of the prong tips on the tobacco leaves moved along the same, a beater roll disposed at the outlet end ofthe loosening means and its plate, saidbeater rollhavingpins adapted to rengageinterstices of the comb prongs of the loosening means, strip oif the ribs adhering to them, carry them along, and by beating the same against the housing, remove any leaf portions still adhering to the ribs, a grating concentric with the axis of rotation of the beater roll, one end of said grating extending in proximity to one end of the curved plate of the loosening means, and means adjusting the grating to and from the beater roll, said grating having rods spaced at different distances from each other, said distances increasing in size progressively in the direction of movement of the pins of the beater rolls, whereby the leaf portions are stripped from the ribs of the tobacco leaves.

6. In an apparatus for ripping raw tobacco leaves, having a housing, a pressure channel means for feeding tobacco leaves into said channel, means at the outlet end of the channel acting upon the leaves for loosening the leaf portions from the ribs of the tobacco leaves, said loosening means including comb prongs acting upon the tobacco leaves perpendicularly to the plane of said leaves while under compression in said pressure channel for moving said leaves away from the pressure channel and straightening them out, a plate having an interior contour concentric with the circle formed by the circular movement of the tips of said comb prongs, said plate extending below said channel about a third of the arc of said circle, and acting as an anvil to the action of the prong tips on the tobacco leaves moved along the same, a beater roll disposed at the outlet end of the loosening means and its plate, said beater roll having pins adapted to engage interstices of the comb prongs of the loosening means to strip off the ribs adhering to them, carry them along, and by beating the same against the housing, remove any leaf portions still adhering to the ribs, a grating concentric with the axis of rotation of the beater roll, one end of said grating extending in proximity to one end of the circular plate of the loosening means, means adjusting the grating to and from the beater roll, said grating having rods spaced at different distances from each other, said distances increasing in size progressively in the direction of movement of the pins of the beater rolls, said housing having radial slots, extensions on said grating rods movable in said slots, and means fastening the extensions in position in said slots, whereby the leaf portions are stripped from the ribs of the tobacco leaves.

7. In an apparatus for ripping raw tobacco leaves, having a housing, forwarding compressing means for conveying the leaves, superposed abutments disposed in relation to said means to form with said means a pressure channel, one end of each abutment being on a circle, means for feeding tobacco leaves into said channel and between said forwarding compressing means, means at the outlet end of the channel acting upon the leaves resting on the abutments forming the channel for loosening the leaf portions from the ribs of the tobacco leaves, said loosening means including comb prongs acting upon the compressed tobacco leaves perpendicularly to the plane of said leaves while under compression in said pressure channel for moving said leaves away from the pressure channel and straightening them out, a plate having an interior contour concentric with the circumference formed by the circular movement of the tips of said comb prongs, said plate extending below said abutments about a third of said circumference, said plate acting as an anvil to the action of the prong tips on the tobacco leaves moved along the same, and a beater roll disposed at the outlet end of said loosening means and its plate, said beater roll having pins adapted to engage interstices of the comb prongs of the loosening means to strip off the ribs adhering to them, carry them along, and by beating the same against the housing, remove any leaf portions still adhering to the ribs, whereby the leaf portions are stripped from the ribs of the tobacco leaves.

OSWALD ERICH EISSMANN. 

